Newark Mayor Cory Booker touts scholarship bill that would allow some students to attend private school

View full sizeAristide Economopoulos/The Star-LedgerNewark Mayor Cory Booker speaks at education conference held by the American Federation for Children today in Jersey City.

JERSEY CITY — A bill that would offer private and parochial school scholarships to some Newark students would give those children the chance at a bright future that many of their public schools deny them today, Newark Mayor Cory Booker said during a keynote address in Jersey City.

Booker spoke to the American Federation for Children, a privately funded group that advocates for school choice in select states across the country. Gov. Chris Christie delivered a keynote address to the group Thursday and also urged passage of the bill, known as the Opportunity Scholarship Act.

"We have created a system that chokes out potential of millions of children trapped in schools that deny the beauty of their genius," Booker said. "We need to get the Opportunity Scholarship Act passed because we need to lift the bar higher."

Though the bill came close to advancing through the legislature last year, it has stalled in recent months even though the governor has repeatedly urged state lawmakers to take action. Democrats have taken issue with the size of the proposed pilot program, which could offer scholarships to students in up to 13 towns.

Democratic power broker George Norcross also addressed the luncheon crowd of about 400 and praised the legislature's action earlier this year on the Urban Hope Act. The new law, which Christie had considered a top legislative priority, allows private companies to build and manage two public schools in Newark, Trenton and Camden.

"By 2014 in Camden, we will have two schools with longer school years, longer school hours, tutoring for students and more," Norcross said. "These schools will be state of the art — the envy of any suburban school district."

The legislature has two more months to act on Christie's other education reform priorities, including changes to teacher tenure, expanding access to charter schools and eliminating teachers' seniority rights during layoffs.